The Mistletoe Affair

by Judith Gilbert

  Katherine paused at the door and looked back. What would Thomas say, and what would Matt think? So many things had been changed for him in the last few years, but Grandma's house had always been his mainstay. He looked forward to visits months in advance, with its huge yard and special swing set, erected just for him, ‘by a neighbor,’ Grace had told her last summer. It turned out ‘the neighbor’ had been Jared. Her heart started beating faster as she watched Thomas kneel beside Matt. The potential for disruption in her son's life was enormous if Thomas didn't answer right.

  Thomas knelt beside Matt and nodded. “This house has been in your grandma's family for generations. Everyone who loves her knows what this house means to your grandma. I wouldn't dream of taking her away from here."

  Matt smiled.

  Katherine practically flew down the street and leapt up the steps to Jared's house. Her heart thudded with excitement as she stood on his huge front porch. She glanced past the rocking chairs to the right and noticed a Toyota parked in the driveway.

  Someone must be visiting.

  She laughed. Wait till I tell him how well everything turned out.

  The front door stood ajar. She stuck her head inside and yelled, “Jared? Are you there?"

  She stopped to listen.

  Alan Jackson's, “Don't Close Your Eyes” floated from the back of the house. The song brought back torrid memories of when Jared had held her in his strong arms and the heated kisses they had exchanged.

  “Jared, it's me,” she called. Adrenaline rushed through her veins making her giddy as she headed down the hall.

  The refrains of the love ballad seemed to come from the room directly ahead. She reached for the knob and opened the door. It swung outward and Katherine's jaw dropped.

  Jared stood with his back to the kitchen cabinet. His hands clutched the counters. A voluptuous redhead plastered her body against his and held him in a passionate kiss.

  Katherine stared and shook her head, willing the image to disappear. Tears stung her eyes, causing the mirage to shimmer, but the sordid reality remained.

  Damn him! He is just like Paul!

  “Jared! How could you!” she demanded.

  Breaking the kiss, he swung his gaze to Katherine, his eyes widening in shock. Too late, he thrust the woman aside.

  Pain rocked Katherine.

  Jared moved toward her but she turned and ran, tears streaming down her face. His footsteps sounded behind her as she raced for the front door, flung it open and ran across the porch. “Katherine, come back. It isn't what you think. Trust me!” he shouted.

  “No, it's exactly what I think,” she spat through her tears as she stumbled down the front steps, slipping on the damp wood.

  “Katherine,” he shouted again, his voice insistent, “Trust me!"

  Chapter Sixteen

  Katherine stopped running. She turned her head and glared over her shoulder. The street was empty and cold, trees stripped of their leaves reached into the night like angry sentinels. Jared had slipped back into his house with the other woman. The memory of his words tore at her heart. ‘It isn't what you think. Trust me.’ She ripped her gaze off his house and stared at the ground, gulping air into her lungs. She had eyes. How could it not be what it had looked like?

  Trust me.

  How could he ask her to trust him in a situation like that?

  But that was what she had asked of Jared. She had asked him to trust not what he had heard from her lips, but what he heard with his heart. She stumbled on the uneven sidewalk in front of her mother's house. Why didn't she have that same faith in him?

  Because there was no other way to interpret what she'd just seen. He had betrayed her.

  The thought stopped her cold. She stared at the icicle lights he'd put up for her. “Jared,” she cried softly, feeling the hurt and loneliness sinking deep in her soul.

  If I hurt you, I hurt me.

  Well, he had hurt her.

  Tears filled her eyes as she spun around and faced Jared's house again. Anything could be going on inside. Two images whirled in her head, both merged into a conflicted melding of Jared and Paul. Cheating men. She shook her head, trying to concentrate on Jared. The whirling images became crystal-clear memories of her times with Jared. His worrying about her, the way he looked at her, their talks in the kitchen, his putting Matt to bed, taking him shopping, making him laugh, Jared searching for her, and winking at her just before Paul walked through the door of Jared's office. Everything he did showed his love for her and Matt.

  Katherine, trust me!

  Oh, God, how could she have been so foolish? She sped back to Jared leaping up two porch steps at a time and hurried inside. Her heart pounded as she wove her way through the rooms, tugged the door open and stepped inside the kitchen again.

  Jared and the other woman glanced at Katherine.

  “What took you so long?” Jared rasped, coughing to clear his throat. “I'm sorry.” He shook his head and Katherine saw the deep hurt in his eyes. “It was not what it seemed. I can explain."

  “No, let me,” the female voice interrupted. “I'm Shannon Raven. You must be Katherine Cahill."

  Katherine stared at the tall, beautiful woman standing in his kitchen with tears in her eyes. “Two of the biggest mistakes I made in my life involved Jared. First, I jilted him and went back to my sorry ex. I barged over here and didn't believe Jared when he said it was over.” She hesitated. “I kissed him. He did not kiss me."

  Katherine glanced back at Jared, who stood watching her in silence. His face was unreadable-it was up to her to decide. “I know,” she said slowly.

  Shannon wiped her eyes as she walked toward the door. She glanced over her shoulder. “Jared was right about us. If I had really loved him, I never would have jilted him. Be happy, you two."

  After the door closed behind her, Jared's fingers brushed across Katherine's lips, outlining them with caresses. “We will be happy, Katherine. I promise.” He wrapped her in his arms, folding her in his love. “You trusted me."

  Her voice faltered. “I-I trusted our love."

  His body trembled. “Do you want to know why I let Shannon kiss me?"

  Katherine nodded. “She cornered you and I think you did it so Shannon would get on with her life."

  He nodded, cupping her chin and lifting it. Their gazes locked and she saw sadness reflected in his eyes. “I wanted to convince her I didn't love her and I wasn't marrying you to get even with her.” He clutched at her and crushed her against him. “Instead I almost lost you again."

  “Never, my love,” she vowed. A smile tugged at her lips. “But the next time you decide to help a damsel in distress, discuss it with me first."

  “Always,” he promised, sealing it with kisses.

  “Jared,” she whispered against his lips, “I almost forgot.” She snuggled against him. His hand trembled as he unbuttoned her shirt and cupped her breast. “I can't think with you doing that."

  “Don't. Just feel,” he said around a deep breath.

  His mouth swooped down and kissed her long and hard. He released a low groan when he drew back and gazed in her eyes.

  “Mother and Thomas are engaged.” She moaned. “We have to help them celebrate."

  She felt the suppressed desire as he pulled away from her and kissed her lightly on the cheek. “Now you tell me.” He laughed, took her hand and pulled her toward the door.

  * * * *

  Katherine sat cross-legged in her jeans, fingering the wheels, washers, rods and snap on nuts that cluttered the living room floor. She chewed her bottom lip and studied the diagrams. “It's Greek. Why are manufacturer's instructions so complicated?"

  “So we'll think they know what they're doing when they built these toys and charge a fortune for them.” He sat himself down in the middle of the mess, easily fitting together the alien-produced pieces of plastic and metal that so baffled Katherine.

  “Since we pay so much for the toys, why do we end up putting them together?” sh
e asked, holding up three more mysterious pieces.

  Jared reached and guided her hands, showing her how to connect the parts. “Katherine, I don't think you're going to solve this huge manufacturing dilemma tonight. We have to assemble these toys for Matt because it's Christmas Eve,” he said with a wink.

  She snapped the parts into place. “Now you know the real reason I agreed to marry you.” He grinned and his dimple deepened, shifting her focus to his incredibly sexy mouth.

  His gaze drifted to the buttons on her blouse. He looked back up with a roguish smile. He handed her another set of instructions. “Get your mind back on the task. You keep looking at me like that and we'll never get these toys together."

  Her face heated and she stuck her tongue out at him.

  “Katherine,” he said in a warning tone and shoved another box her way with a smile. “Get busy."

  By one in the morning, they had the last present assembled and under the Christmas tree. They held each other and inspected their finished work, unplugged the lights and plunged the room into darkness. Katherine reached out and found Jared as they stumbled on the bottom of the stairs.

  “Katherine, cut that out,” Jared whispered. “You're supposed to feel your way up the stairs, not up me."

  She giggled. “Can't I do both?"

  Her hand drifted down the hard plane of his stomach and over the cotton fabric of his jeans. “If you don't stop that, I'll die from frustration.” He stood in front of the bedroom next to hers. “I don't want to confuse Matt, or give him anything to think about on Christmas morning but his own excitement at opening presents and seeing the two of us coming out of your bedroom wouldn't help that. We don't know what time Matt's getting up."

  Leaning into him, she touched his cheek lightly with her lips before going to her own bedroom.

  “Sweetheart, you're killing me,” he whispered.

  She closed the door softly and braced herself against it with a smile.

  * * * *

  Katherine ran into Jared's bedroom, put her hand on his bare shoulder and shook him.

  “Matt's awake,” she whispered.

  Jared's eyes flew open and he squinted against the dim, gray light.

  “I'll stall him while you get dressed.” She hurried on, ignoring the fact that he wasn't moving yet. “Thomas is on his way with the puppy and my mother is already downstairs."

  “What time is it?” he said, throwing back the covers. He hopped out of bed, slid into his pants and yawned.

  “Five o'clock."

  He rubbed his eyes, ran his hand over his hair, rumpling it. “Do I have time to shower?"

  Katherine stared at him in horror. “No! We can stall him five, maybe ten minutes if you want to shave. So get going."

  Ten minutes later Jared held Matt in his arms and headed down the stairs. “Close your eyes. No peeking. I'll tell you when you can open them."

  Jared stood him in front of the lighted Christmas tree, and Grace and Thomas moved closer so they could see Matt's face.

  “Open your eyes,” Jared said.

  “Merry Christmas!” everyone shouted as Matt opened his eyes and squealed, hopping up and down and from foot to foot. Katherine practically did summersaults around the living room trying to get photographs of his joyful little face from every angle. “A perfect picture,” she exclaimed every time, aiming and clicking the camera.

  Matt ran toward a bicycle. “A big boy's bike.” He put one hand on the handlebar and puffed his chest out with pride.

  A scratching and sniffing sound came from a perforated box about to tip over. Hearing a sharp ‘yip', Matt's eyes rounded and his jaw dropped. Jared opened the lid and Matt bent to peak inside. He was quickly rewarded with a friendly lick and giggled as the collie puppy leaped out of the box. The puppy squirmed, wagged her tail, jumped up on its hind legs and knocked Matt off his feet, making him laugh.

  After Jared helped Matt sit back up and settled the puppy on his lap, Matt's happy face turned to Katherine, eyes wide with excitement. “Look at her, Mom. Isn't she cool?” His berry-red, chubby lips smiled at her in complete happiness. When had she last seen such joy on his little face?

  “Yes, she is,” Katherine agreed with a grin.

  Jared urged Katherine to take a picture as Matt cuddled and hugged the pup. “Her food and water are in the washroom, along with her leash. She needs a name though."

  Matt glanced at the beautiful porcelain angel on top of the tree and his eyes lit up. He turned to Jared. “I wanna call her Star. ‘Cause I wished on one and got you."

  A tear ran down Katherine's cheek.

  Matt reached under the tree and grabbed a gift-wrapped box. He ran over to her and Star followed close at his heels like a shadow. “Don't cry, Mom. I got you something special, too."

  “Thank you, sweetheart,” she said, kissing him on the cheek and holding the gift he handed her.

  “Thomas and I have set our wedding date for December thirty-first. We want a simple ceremony at the house so all our friends and neighbors can attend. We'd like Matt to serve as the ring bearer and Jared as best man.” Her mother took Katherine's hand. “And I'd like you to be my maid of honor."

  Katherine hugged her. “Yes. I can't wait."

  “What does a ring bearer do exactly?” Matt asked.

  Katherine knelt beside him. “He walks down the aisle with a ring on a pillow and gets chocolate candy afterwards."

  “I can do that,” he said, nodding.

  Jared laughed. “I'll be proud to be your best man, Thomas, and you can be mine sometime in January.” He raised his eyebrows and glanced at Katherine. “I'm hoping she won't keep me waiting too long."

  “Mom plans on taking a two week honeymoon. She'll need a couple of days to get back to earth.” Katherine could see Jared's gaze dancing across the wall calendar hunting their wedding day. “January twenty-first, if that's okay with Mom and Thomas."

  Jared barely waited for them to nod. He pulled her against him and kissed her thoroughly.

  When he released her, he reached into his pocket, pulled out a small wrapped present and handed it to her.

  She nervously tore the paper, removed the velvet box and opened the lid. Inside lay an exquisite emerald-cut engagement ring and a platinum wedding band. She squinted to read the tiny inscription inside the band, ‘My unchanging love. Always, Jared'.

  “They're beautiful, darling,” she said to Jared, lifting her head and looking at him.

  He coughed, and placed the engagement ring on her finger. “I hope Grace and Thomas don't mind keeping Matt for two weeks."

  “Can't I go with you?” Matt pleaded.

  “Who's going to look after Sweet Pea and Star?” Grace asked. “I thought we'd spend that time at your ranch in Katy."

  Jared winked at Grace.

  Matt squealed, jumping up and down and Star joined in the fun making circles. Star barked as Matt ran and placed another present in Katherine's lap along with two envelopes.

  One envelope contained shredded paper and a letter from her business partners Roger, Ethan and Christopher. They had torn up her sales agreement and treated the money she had received from them as an advance against future earnings. The letter went on to say, ‘Don't argue with us’ and they wished her a Merry Christmas.

  Katherine sniffed and grabbed a handful of tissues.

  The second envelope contained a picture of Jared's ranch in Katy, and Matt riding Sweet Pea. The caption read, ‘Future home of Mr. and Mrs. Randall and their son Matt Randall."

  Katherine wiped tears from her eyes.

  Matt's arms went around her neck as he scrambled onto her lap. Star whimpered at their feet. Matt's eyes filled with concern. “Aren't you happy about us going to live on Dad's ranch? I love his ranch."

  “I'm happy. That's why I'm crying."

  Matt scratched his head. “Are you sure?"

  “Oh yes, sweetheart, very sure.” Hearing a gasp, she spied the risqué pajamas Matt had given her mother and stifled a g
iggle. Thomas rolled his eyes and her mother blushed.

  Matt gave Katherine a kiss on the cheek, and he crawled down from her lap to hand out more gifts.

  When Thomas unwrapped the present from her mother containing his silk bathrobe and the silk sheets, Katherine smiled at the tender look they exchanged.

  Her gaze flew to Jared. She bit her thumbnail and watched as he opened one of her gifts to him, the framed photograph that Mrs. Taylor had taken of Jared, Matt and Katherine at the birthday dance. Jared touched the picture. He smiled and glanced her way. Her breath caught at the love that reached across the room and enveloped her.

  “Open this one,” Matt interrupted, poking a finger through the paper.

  “What have we here?” Katherine asked playfully, ripping it open. Out popped hundreds of squiggly, squirming, squishy plastic worms. They covered her lap like a wiggling gelatin mold.

  “We got everything to go with the worms,” Matt explained, pointing to one corner where fishing equipment sprawled against the wall. “Dad owns a boat and we're going fishing soon as it warms up. Aren't we, Dad?"

  When Matt called Jared ‘Dad', unprompted and with complete sincerity, her heart overflowed with joy. As happy voices drifted around her, tears ran down her cheeks again.

  “Dad, Mom's crying bad now,” Matt said with concern again.

  Jared's arms wrapped around her and pulled her back against his chest. She went, and listened as her lover spoke over her head to her son, “Your mother's happy, son. Women cry when they're happy, too."

  Matt folded his arms and studied the situation. “I'm really happy, but I'm not crying. Women should cry only when they're sad so we don't get confused. They're weird sometimes, aren't they, Dad?"

  “Sometimes, but we love them anyway,” Jared agreed.

  Everyone chuckled, except Katherine, who sniffled and elbowed Jared indignantly in the ribs.

  “I bet we can make her laugh,” Jared said with mischief lighting his eyes. He bent and whispered something to Matt, who giggled.

  Her mother and Thomas's eyes widened. “Oh, Katherine, you're in for it now. Run!” her mother yelled.